Students learns about dangers of distracted driving with Arrive Alive simulator

CENTRAL, LA (WAFB) - Central High students got a crash course on the dangers of distracted driving Friday.

Luckily, they were able to get the lesson without getting injured or even crashing a car, and it was all thanks to a high tech simulator. The folks from Unite stopped by on their Arrive Alive tour. Students got to sit behind the wheel and with the help of some virtual reality goggles, they got to see, instead of just read, how dangerous drunk and distracted driving can be.

"We do have the gas, the brake, and the steering, the actual Jeep, the actual steering wheel in their hands, so I feel it's a little more impactful than when they're getting a pamphlet handed to them or someone telling them these things could happen," said Mallory Mckenzie with Arrive Alive.

Here are a couple of sobering statistics about distracted driving from the National Safety Council:

• Texting while driving is six times more likely to cause a crash than drinking and driving
• Of all teen drivers involved in fatal crashes, 21 percent were distracted by their cellphones

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